By Lincoln Hubbard
lincoln@newsroom.byu.edu
A FARMS exhibition is on display for students at BYU.
The FARMS work on the dead seas scrolls is touring the western United States and won't be in Utah until September, but BYU students have access to an exhibit currently showing in the Wilkinson Student Center.
'The Dead Sea scrolls are considered by most scholars one of, if not the greatest ancient textural find of the twentieth century,' said Richard M. Hartley, associate director of operations for the Foundation of Ancient Research and Mormon Studies.
FARMS has been involved in work relating to the Dead Sea scrolls since the mid-1990s and Hartley said they have discovered two things relating to memberes of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
'We found that Latter-day Saints know very little about the Dead Sea scrolls, partly because information has not been readily available until the last 10-15 years,' he said. 'Secondly, they want to know if the Dead Sea scrolls support anything that has to do with their faith.'
The exhibit in the Wilkinson Student Center is an opportunity for students to learn about the scrolls and other ancient texts.
Hartley said most of the scrolls are not religious in nature, but about life in the community where they were written.
However, extracts of every Old Testament book with the exception of Esther have been discovered.
Featured in the exhibition are copies of the Isaiah scroll which includes all 66 chapters of the Book of Isaiah and the temple scroll which details a design of the temple to be built at Jerusalem.
Also on display is a copy of the Alma scroll, which is not part of the Dead Sea scroll collection but a land deed from the same region and time.
The scroll contains the oldest use of the male name Alma outside of the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ.
Hartley said the actual scrolls rarely if ever leave Jerusalem, where they are kept in special environments under tight security, so the scrolls in the exhibition are copies.
But the exhibition features authentic pottery and clay lamps from the region, some over 3000 years old. There are also ancient Israeli coins, including a widows mite on display, he said.
Hartley said that the Dead Sea scrolls are important to many religions because they are the oldest records of many Old Testament scriptures.
'It helps to verify the translations of the Old Testament that were done in the third and fourth centuries,' Hartley said.
Hartley said the purpose in FARMS research was not to replace people's testimonies.
'Once you have your testimony, this can help to add to and strengthen it just by increasing your knowledge,' Hartley said.
The exhibit is located on the second floor of the Wilkinson Student Center on the west side, and will be there during the CES symposium and education week on campus in August.